Caption: Senator Michael Bennet
DEMOCRATIC United States Senator Michael Bennet has introduced legislation aimed at strengthening United States security cooperation with Guyana and deter Venezuelan aggression against the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) country.
“As Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro continues to threaten Guyana, the United States must work with Guyana to deter such aggression,” said Bennet, a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence.
He said the bill will force the Pentagon to evaluate current cooperation and determine where improvements can be made.
Bennet’s legislation would require the Secretary of Defense to provide a report to Congress on the state of current security cooperation between the United States and Guyana and whether additional US assistance is necessary to deter a potential Venezuelan attack on Guyana.
Since taking office in 2013, Maduro has ramped up threats against Guyana, claiming the country’s Essequibo region as part of his country despite international law affirming the region’s status as part of Guyana.
The matter is before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the core of the dispute is Venezuela’s rejection of the 1899 Arbitral Award that established the boundary between British Guiana (now Guyana) and Venezuela.
Bennet said that the Maduro’s regime has flown Venezuelan Air Force Jets over Guyanese territory and threatened oil facilities in Guyana’s internationally-recognized maritime territory, among other malicious actions.
Both the Biden and Trump administrations have bolstered security cooperation with Guyana and promised to impose costs on Venezuela if Caracas attacks Guyana. This bill would augment these bipartisan efforts.
Bennet said that Guyana is a key partner in advancing regional security, democracy, and stability, and a burgeoning oil exporter that supplies crude to Europe, helping the continent reduce its reliance on Russian crude amid Russia’s unprovoked and unjustified war on Ukraine.
In January 2025, Bennet and Republican Jim Risch introduced the Venezuela Advancing Liberty, Opportunity, and Rights (VALOR) Act, after Maduro falsely claimed victory in 2024 elections and took office despite the Venezuelan people voting for Edmundo González Urrutia, to guide US policy in support of a transition to democratic order in Venezuela.
Bennet and Risch first introduced the VALOR Act in 2024 following Maduro’s sham July 2024 presidential election.
Bennet and another Republican legislator, Bill Cassidy also lead the Americas Act, the only major strategic economic plan to counter China’s geopolitical and economic influence in the Western Hemisphere.
In February 2025, Bennet three other legislators in introducing the Haiti Economic Lift Programme Extension (HELP) Act, which would extend trade benefits for apparel products produced in Haiti from 2025 to 2035. (CMC)
